Justice Bello bows out of CCA, launches maiden law report

The President of the Customary Court of Appeal (CCA) of the
Federal Capital Territory, Justice Moses Abubakar Bello, has
retired as the head of the court after 25 years in office.

The outgoing president of the court, who retired after attaining
the mandatory retirement age for judicial officers, also used the
special valedictory court session in his honour on Thursday to
launch the court’s maiden Law Report.

Presenting the Law Report, the FCT Chief Judge, Justice Ishaq
Bello, said the essence of the report is to document decisions of
the court reached through the interpretation of customary laws.

He said the Law Report was a testimony of the customary beliefs
and practices, which he noted were documented in the report. He
added that the report contained the court’s decisions on customary
marriage, its jurisdiction, customs and other sundry issues.

The FCT CJ had earlier, in his speech commended the retiring
president of the CCA for his contribution to the development of
customary laws and the judiciary in general. He said his sterling
example and leadership quality which stood as his legacies would be
built upon by judges of the court.

Also speaking, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and
Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), described Justice Moses
Bello as a respected and distinguished jurist, who had contributed
immensely to the development of customary laws in Nigeria.

The AGF said the life of Justice Bello is an inspiration to the
legal practitioners and the judiciary, adding also that the
retiring President of the Customary Court of Appeal is a “rare
jurist of substance and calibre, recognised by the judiciary and
the nation.”

In his speech, Justice Moses Bello, who was appointed as the
pioneer president of the Customary Court of Appeal, FCT Judiciary
in 1992, said the highest point in his judicial career was “the
passage into law by the National Assembly of the Customary Court of
Appeal of the FCT, Abuja (Jurisdiction on Chieftaincy matters) Act,
2011, which conferred on the FCT-CCA, original jurisdiction to hear
and determine chieftaincy matters in the FCT to the exclusion of
any other court.”

“I am pleased to state that we now have 44 functional Customary
Courts spread across the FCT with state-of -the-art court room
facilities,” he added.

The President of the Customary Court of Appeal (CCA) of the
Federal Capital Territory, Justice Moses Abubakar Bello, has
retired as the head of the court after 25 years in office.

The outgoing president of the court, who retired after attaining
the mandatory retirement age for judicial officers, also used the
special valedictory court session in his honour on Thursday to
launch the court’s maiden Law Report.

Presenting the Law Report, the FCT Chief Judge, Justice Ishaq
Bello, said the essence of the report is to document decisions of
the court reached through the interpretation of customary laws.

He said the Law Report was a testimony of the customary beliefs
and practices, which he noted were documented in the report. He
added that the report contained the court’s decisions on customary
marriage, its jurisdiction, customs and other sundry issues.

The FCT CJ had earlier, in his speech commended the retiring
president of the CCA for his contribution to the development of
customary laws and the judiciary in general. He said his sterling
example and leadership quality which stood as his legacies would be
built upon by judges of the court.

Also speaking, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and
Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), described Justice Moses
Bello as a respected and distinguished jurist, who had contributed
immensely to the development of customary laws in Nigeria.

The AGF said the life of Justice Bello is an inspiration to the
legal practitioners and the judiciary, adding also that the
retiring President of the Customary Court of Appeal is a “rare
jurist of substance and calibre, recognised by the judiciary and
the nation.”

In his speech, Justice Moses Bello, who was appointed as the
pioneer president of the Customary Court of Appeal, FCT Judiciary
in 1992, said the highest point in his judicial career was “the
passage into law by the National Assembly of the Customary Court of
Appeal of the FCT, Abuja (Jurisdiction on Chieftaincy matters) Act,
2011, which conferred on the FCT-CCA, original jurisdiction to hear
and determine chieftaincy matters in the FCT to the exclusion of
any other court.”

“I am pleased to state that we now have 44 functional Customary
Courts spread across the FCT with state-of -the-art court room
facilities,” he added.